HVAC-Talk site will be slow for the next few days. It's normal site/server maintenance. Thx -Dad

Welcome to HVAC-Talk.com, a non-DIY site and the ultimate Source for HVAC Information & Knowledge Sharing for the industry professional! Here you can join over 150,000 HVAC Professionals & enthusiasts from around the world discussing all things related to HVAC/R. You are currently viewing as a NON-REGISTERED guest which gives you limited access to view discussions

To gain full access to our forums you must register; for a free account. As a registered Guest you will be able to:

Participate in over 40 different forums and search/browse from nearly 3 million posts.

What's the best, cheap hvac business software?

Hi,

I just finished school and started a service/repair business. HVAC tools are expensive enough and now I'm trying to find a simple, low cost book keeping and Invoice software. Quickbooks doesn't quite seem to quite fit the service field... I just want simple cost-parts/profit software and service invoice sheets and the like. I checked out some of the field related software and it costs $600 and up. Jeez! Anybody have any suggestions? Would very much apreciate the help. thanks!

I have always used a spreadsheet program to calculate pricing. I use a sliding scale in sections when figuring mark up on parts. Basically the lower the cost the more the mark up. I enter the cost of the part, repair time and the spreadsheet spits out the total price. I use my price list to give the customer the price before the work is done.

What do you want to spend, time or money? You can pay big bucks to get nice and polished flat rate pricing software, or you can build your own spreadsheet that does the same thing.

You must be very confident in your abilities to start a business from the ground up, fresh out of school, with no tools. I would recommend getting a job and working for someone else for at least 10 years, by then you will be seasoned enough to make the leap. We cant even sit for the state license test in NC without 2000 hours in the field. Good luck. As far as software, there are many different types. Try Quick books customer manager and invoice manager as a cheap start. You will need load calc and duct design software @ some point if you plan on doing installations.

I just finished school and started a service/repair business. HVAC tools are expensive enough and now I'm trying to find a simple, low cost book keeping and Invoice software. Quickbooks doesn't quite seem to quite fit the service field... I just want simple cost-parts/profit software and service invoice sheets and the like. I checked out some of the field related software and it costs $600 and up. Jeez! Anybody have any suggestions? Would very much apreciate the help. thanks!

So you are a company in this business and you do not have the tools needed? You also do not have a billing system? You want something "cheap" that sounds great ... you know something less expensive would work a lot better as opposed to something "cheap". You see something cheap is ... well cheap, how does it get to be cheap? ... by being made cheaply ... and what are the main ingredient used to make something cheap... "lack of quality" followed closely by "lack of quantity" and "lack of pride"

So, I would suggest you "work" in the trade for a while and learn how it's done right first. Then off you go to become a great business owner who really knows his stuff. And then when someone asks you to do a job "cheap" you can tell them we do not do cheap, we can hopefully tailor a less expensive job to meet your budget. I think you and your potential customer will both be happier with the results. You also can look back at your work with pride ... and that's nice ...

PS;
I hope this post did not scare you I have a habit of making guys here cry. Not on purpose mind you, its just that they post things that are in need of adjustment so I suggest adjustments and they start crying I know, I know its weird, it started back a few years ago with this guy ummm I think his name was Duce, or Deck, Or dime, or some other four letter word.

Best wishes

.

"Nothing else can poison our culture, corrupt our society or ruin the character of our people like unearned money or unearned opportunity." -- James R. Cook

"Fooling around with alternating current is just a waste of time. Nobody will use it, ever." Thomas Edison, 1889.

i use quickbooks simple start and it does very well i think... only thing i'd want off of quickbooks pro would be the inventory but i got spreadsheets for that. i went to staples and bought quickbooks simple start for $80 and got a rebate on it for $80. so in the end it was free. can't beat that.

Go for it!

Originally Posted by freshandgreen1

Hi,

I just finished school and started a service/repair business. HVAC tools are expensive enough and now I'm trying to find a simple, low cost book keeping and Invoice software. Quickbooks doesn't quite seem to quite fit the service field... I just want simple cost-parts/profit software and service invoice sheets and the like. I checked out some of the field related software and it costs $600 and up. Jeez! Anybody have any suggestions? Would very much apreciate the help. thanks!

Don't be intimidated by the naysayers:

If you did well in school, you feel you are prepared and you have the means, determination, and endurance, then go for it.

Realize that experience is only as good as the teacher and the quality of the experience - only quality experience counts. You will learn as you go and, if you did well in your studies and apply what you learned, you may already be miles ahead of those who would hire you to learn on the job for "10yrs". Experience working with or for someone who has miles of so-so experience and less intelligence won't help you. Everyone on this string knows that there are lots of those "businesses" out there.

Now, to address the business-side question... they all started where you are now when they starting their new business except they may have had more experience. Realize that many business with and without "experience" fail. Keep asking questions and stay abreast new technologies -- Concentrate on the right relationships and you are miles on the way to success.

Often naysayers are just those who don't want more competition in a field that already has plenty - remember that some/much of the competition is all about blow and bravado -- just focus on the customer and doing your best

In order to succeed in HVAC you have to be good at it. If you have zero experience you will have a huge learning curve. If you are already seriously mechanically inclined, then you may have a better shot. But hey I appreciate your bravado.

Quickbooks online works great for us. The phone app allows us to send receipts via email and we are paperless and do not have to enter the information again. Cut bookeeping in half.

How in the world are you going to install this stuff with no experience...?